'Bold': Sign language
"It is a river! A river! What a beautiful feeling it is! It looks like there is an equipment! It seems we will be able to have exclusive possession of a mechanism! It is only a ten-minute walk, so let's go together simultaneously."
Ike's team had left earlier for a search mission so they may have already found that spot. And it seemed they were guarding it so other classes wouldn't snatch it away.
"This is a glorious achievement; if we can maintain the river's source, our situation may vastly improve."
"Still, two teams haven't returned yet; I guess it will be trouble if no one stays here to wait for them."
The clock showed that it was almost 3 o'clock, and we might be unable to hold on to the original schedule. Besides, there are countless possibilities of where they could be wandering in this vast forest.
"I'm sorry, Hirata-kun... Kouenji-kun bailed on us," Matsushita apologized.
"It's okay. Kouenji-kun returned a little while ago before leaving to go swimming," Hirata said.
I'm not surprised.
"So, he bailed on you, huh?" Horikita asked, sighing as everyone began moving toward the river.
'I don't know what you were expecting.'
Horikita suddenly turned and looked behind her, staring sharply at Sakura.
"Eh?!" Sakura was startled.
"Were you looking at me just now?" Horikita asked.
"I-I-I-I wasn't looking at anything!" Sakura became flustered before running off to put some distance between us.
'Please don't scare her.'
"So that I allow her to mess with me as she pleases?"
We went to Ike's chosen spot at a river's edge. Hirata and his team started setting up the tents and other necessities for a camp near the river.
"Okay, the water is beautiful, and there is shade that blocks the sunlight. The terrain is level. It might be the ideal place for our base camp here. Amazing, Ike-kun," Hirata said.
"I know, right?"
The river was about ten meters wide, and the water flowed gently. Deep forests and sand roads surrounded the river, but this place looked like it had been maintained.
Our school set this up on purpose.
"Assuming we want to use this as our base camp, the question is whether or not to take possession of it."
"We should, shouldn't we? If we do, we can use the river and get points every eight hours."
"That means the leader needs to renew possession every eight hours."
"That's right. And if another class sees that..."
"Can't we just surround them while they do it?
"That's a good idea," Hirata said.
Hirata turned around and asked for the class's opinions, and they seemed on board with the idea.
"Who'll be the leader?" Hirata asked.
"Let's see..."
The class had their opinions, and then Kushida said, "Hey, guys, can I say something?"
Everyone gathered in a circle and listened to what Kushida wanted to say.
"I've been thinking about it... People like Hirata-kun and Karuizawa-san stand out, whether they mean to or not. But the person entrusted with the role of leader needs to be someone responsible, right?"
Hirata nodded in agreement.
"I think the only person who meets both requirements... is Kagurazaka-kun. What about you guys?"
I wasn't expecting Kushida to recommend me.
"I'm in favor. If you accept the role, Kagurazaka-kun, I'd like you to take it. What do you think?"
Everyone had their attention on me. I closed my eyes and thought about it.
It would be a bad idea for me to be the leader. After proving Sudou's innocence, I bet a lot of students know my name. But... I could use this to my advantage.
I opened my eyes and glanced over at Horikita.
"I don't have a problem with it," Horikita added.
Hirata went over to Chabashira-sensei to pass on my name. Before long, he returned with a card and entrusted it to me. Considering the possibility of being watched, we had everyone touch the device without activating it.
I was already dealing with my first problem, and they were arguing about drinking the water from the river.
I brought my focus to the trees as I saw a crow.
I felt someone poke my side.
"Hey, are you going to do something about the arguing?" Horikita asked.
I turned to her.
'Hirata will be the peacekeeper and deal with it.'
Horikita snorted, "Relying on your classmates, huh?"
I nodded.
'I want to rely on you, too. Can you hold onto the key card?'
Horikita looked slightly surprised before narrowing her eyes, "Why?"
'To hide the leader.'
Horikita's narrowed eyes didn't leave my sight, but she nodded, "Okay."
I passed the card over to her.
'I will be right back.'
"Where are you going?"
'I'm going to look for Kouenji.'
~Timeskip~
I managed to find Kouenji swimming in the ocean as if he was enjoying himself. I waited on the beach until he was done swimming.
"Ah, if it isn't Silent-kun. What brings you here to meet this perfect being?" Kouenji grinned, coming out of the ocean as water dripped off his body.
'Five hundred thousand.'
"Hmm?"
'Five hundred thousand private points if you help us with this exam.'
"How tempting. You've got my interest, Silent-kun. How can I trust that you'll give the points to me?" Kouenji asked.
'You will have to believe my words. I don't like breaking my promises.'
Kouenji closed his eyes and crossed his arms, deep in thought.
"Okay, Silent-kun. I'm intrigued if you'll keep your word. After this exam, I will await my points," Kouenji said.
Class D's base camp
I returned to the camp as Kouenji did whatever he would do. I learned that a few classmates were assigned to gather materials. I noticed that Hasegawa Keiko was sitting alone in the tree. She had a blank expression on her face as she stared off.
I walked over to her and sat beside her.
"Oh, Kagurazaka-kun, do you need something?" She asked.
I shook my head.
She tilted her head, "You're strange."
She didn't add anything to that as she stared at me. Without saying anything else, she got up and started walking away.
~Timeskip~
In the middle of the forest, I was with Sakura and Yamauchi as we were collecting branches and sticks. Sakura didn't want to be alone with Yamauchi and asked me to join her.
"Hey, Kagurazaka, I think I will go after Sakura. Let's face it: Kushida is way out of my league," Yamauchi whispered.
I already know Kushida is out of your league.
"Well, a girl like Sakura is convinced I'm a sensitive and caring guy; I know she'll fall for me."
I have a hard time believing that. Sakura had to ask me to come with her because she was nervous about you, Yamauchi.
What happened to Sakura was still fresh in my mind.
"You have Horikita, anyways."
Since when did I have Horikita?
I watched as Yaumachi made his way over to Sakura.
"Hey, Sakura. Do you want me to help you carry that? It has to be tough for a girl. You might hurt yourself," Yamauchi said.
What a terrible choice of words.
"I-I'm fine..." Sakura muttered.
A lone girl sat with her back up against a large tree. I could tell she wasn't from Class D. When she noticed us, she looked and quickly averted her eyes. There was a red, swollen mark on her cheek.
"Hey, are you alright?" Yamauchi asked.
"Leave me alone. I don't need help," the girl said.
"Who did this to you?" Yamauchi asked.
"It was a class dispute. Don't worry about it," the girl answered, letting out a self-deprecation laugh.
"The three of us are students from Class D, so you can return to our base camp with us if you want," Yamauchi suggested.
"Are you deaf? I don't need your help. I'm in Class C, which means I'm your enemy," she said.
"There shouldn't be a problem. My name's Yamauchi Haruki," Yamauchi introduced himself.
"Well, you seem like you're a good guy, but you're an idiot," the girl said, shocked at Yamauchi's introduction.
"I'm Ibuki..."
We gathered up the branches and returned to camp. Being from a different, Ibuki didn't want to cause any trouble, so she sat further away.
It would've been impossible for her to blend in, so we appreciated her honesty.
I watched as Yamauchi was trying to show off before Sakura by starting a bonfire, but I wanted to watch him fail, so I didn't do anything to help.
"What are you doing? These thick branches aren't going to catch fire. It would be best to start with smaller branches," Ike scolded Yamauchi.
"Use the small branches that Kagurazaka is carrying," Ike gestured.
Ike collected a bundle of dead leaves. He picked up the matchbook and quickly set fire to the dead leaves. As the leaves kindled, I added small twigs. Ike oversaw the fire as he gradually added in thicker branches.
The class gathered around the bonfire and was amazed by Ike's skill.
"You experienced campers know your stuff," Sudou complimented.
"That's the most basic of basics. Just learn that, and anyone can do it," Ike explained.
Kushida's group returned from foraging for edible fruits, and Hirata followed them.
Kushida picked up one of the fruits, "Do you think this one's edible?"
Shinohara shrugged, "Who knows?"
"Maybe they're blueberries!" Kushida said.
Ike walked over to them and looked at the berries Kushida had held.
"Those are bog bilberries! Did you find those, Kikyou-chan? That's amazing!"
Kushida pointed to other fruits, "So, Kanji-kun, do you know what these are?"
Ike picked up the fruit, "Those are figs! They're sweet and delicious, too! Boy, this takes me back!"
"Really?" Karuizawa questioned.
"Ike-kun, you know all about this, huh? That's assuring," Hirata said.
"Looks like you were able to get the bonfire going. Thanks, Kagurazaka-kun."
I pointed at Ike, gesturing that he was the one who got the bonfire started.
"If you can see the smoke, you'll be able to find the campsite even if you get lost, right?" Ike explained.
"Yeah, that's how we returned to the camp so quickly. It's all thanks to you, Kanji-kun!"
Ike wasn't paying attention to the respect given to him as he looked at Shinohara, "Hey, Shinohara. I spent some time thinking about how I acted today, the toilet and stuff, and how stubborn I was. I was pushy because I wanted to save points. I'm sorry."
"Wh-why are you apologizing to me all of a sudden?"
"I just remembered the first time I went camping. The toilet was awful, and, of course, bugs were crawling around everywhere. Just about everything was dirty. I remember going to my parents, complaining about how much I hated going to the bathroom, and telling them I wanted to go home. I'm sure it's even worse for girls..."
It took courage for Ike to say that to Shinohara.
"I'm... sorry for earlier, too, for saying that I couldn't drink from the river. I got way too emotional. We won't be able to keep any of our points if we don't learn to adjust," Shinohara apologized apologetically.
Hirata raised his hand, "Can I say something, everyone? I'd like us all to rely on each other as much as possible until this test ends. Let's aim to have at least 120 of our 300 S-points left over by the time the tests end."
"Do you mean you want to spend 180 S-points?"
"Let's assume we had to buy food and water for everyone for each meal. The most efficient way would be the rations and mineral water set," Hirata said.
I didn't want to ruin the discussion, but we had something else on our hands. I walked over to Hirata and tapped his shoulder, "Oh, Kagurazaka-kun, is something wrong?"
I nodded, gesturing over to Ibuki, who was sitting alone.
"I've seen that girl before. That's Ibuki Mio from Class C," Satou said, eyeing Ibuki with suspicion.
"Well, it sounds like there's been some trouble in her class..." Yamauchi explained, slightly flustered, why Ibuki seemed isolated from her classmates.
"I see. Your judgment was correct. We can't leave her," Hirata said.
"But, Hirata-kun... Couldn't she be a spy? I mean, if she can spot the leader..." Yamauchi asked.
Yamauchi, you're the one to suggest bringing Ibuki here.
"That's possible. I'll check on it."
I nodded before HIrata headed over to Ibuki.
"Ibuki-san, do you have a moment? I wanted to talk to you," Hirata said.
"I'm getting in the way. You've already taken good care of me," Ibuki stood as if she wanted to run.
"Wait a minute. I wanted to ask what happened. I want to help," Ibuki stopped at Hirata's words.
"Nothing will change if I stay. I don't want to waste time just sitting around," Ibuki said.
"This is a test so that some students will doubt you. However, you're hurt. I don't want to chase you away if you can't return to class. I think that's why Yamauchi-kun. So, tell me about your situation.
"This isn't something I can talk about. Besides, I've heard all your plans. You'd hate it if more of your strategies were leaked, right?"
Ibuki started walking away, but Hirata stopped her in her tracks.
"If you were a spy, you wouldn't want to be chased out, would you? Am I wrong?"
"Enough. I'm looking for a place to sleep."
"It's crazy for a girl to sleep alone in the woods."
"Even if it's crazy, I don't have a choice. Helping me won't gain you anything."
"This has nothing to do with losses or gains. We can't leave someone in trouble. We all think so."
"I fought with a guy in my class. He hit me and chased me away. That's all. I won't say anything more on the subject. I didn't think you'd take me in and shelter me, anyway. See you," Ibuki said.
"Wait, I understand you're in trouble. Please give me time. If you can, I will tell the other students about your situation and see if we can find a place for you. Kagurazaka-kun, can you watch Ibuki-san? I'm going to talk to everyone."
Hirata left us and returned to the group.
"He's a good-natured guy, isn't he?" Ibuki asked.
I nodded.
Ibuki sat down, bunched her knees against her chest, and lowered her head.
Hirata managed to persuade our classmates to look after Ibuki. However, some students were vehemently opposed.
This was going to be a long week.